What Might Have Been
by lives2read
Summary: During Twelve Sharp, Ranger and Stephanie are getting friendly when they are interupted by Morelli opening the door to Stephanie's apartment. JE glosses over the subject of what happened next, but here's what might have been... Babe.


Disclaimer – Nothing is mine, although if Ranger doesn't start getting a little action from JE, I'm hoping he'll mutiny and find his way to me.

_Author's note: This is a one-shot that takes place during Twelve Sharp. After Stephanie wakes up on top of Ranger, they start getting more than friendly. Unfortunately, just when Ranger begins to kiss the parts of Stephanie that are under her blanket, Morelli arrives and announces that he is moving into Stephanie's apartment as well. This story starts with the conversation that was written into the book, and quickly evolves into what I think the characters would want to have happen._

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What Might Have Been

I made coffee and ate a pop tart while Ranger showered. Then I went across the hall and swiped Mr. Wolesky's newspaper. I was standing at the kitchen counter reading about the shooting, when Ranger strolled in. He was dressed in jeans, his hair still damp.

"That was close," he said, leaning across me to help himself to the coffee.

"Yeah, you almost opened the door to Morelli." My voice shook slightly, and I wasn't sure if it was a remnant of the adrenaline rush from Joe nearly walking in on us, or if it had more to do with the half dressed man currently invading my personal space. I looked up just in time to see a drop of water escape from his hair and slide down the hard plane of his bare chest. My breath caught in my throat and I had to bite my bottom lip to keep myself following the trail of water with my tongue.

Ranger's expression stayed unreadable, but his eyes darkened as he leaned closer to me. "I wasn't talking about Morelli. I was talking about us."

"That too," I said, my voice coming out in a breathless squeak. It had been close, and I was sure I should be grateful that we had been interrupted before anything happened that made it impossible for me to look Joe in the eye. But hard as I tried, I couldn't feel anything but disappointed. Waking up wrapped in Ranger's arms had felt right, and Ranger's kisses were even better.

"Babe."

The sultriness of Ranger's voice pulled my mind back to the present. I was still leaning against the counter, but now Ranger's hands were on either side of me and his body was mirroring mine, pressed as close as humanly possible, without actually touching. I could feel his breath on my hair, and the proximity of his bare chest made my nipples harden under the thin cotton tank top I had worn for pajamas.

We stood there for a moment, barely breathing, both aware that even the slightest movement would bring our bodies together. I was effectively pinned there beneath him, but surprisingly I felt no pressure from Ranger to act. He was in no hurry. The decision to move forward would have to be mine alone.

I forced myself to think, despite the overwhelming, masculine scent enveloping me. Things were already complicated and stressful enough with trying to anticipate Scrog's next move and rescue Julie, and I didn't want to be a distraction. I knew I should be thinking about the madman who had stolen Ranger's daughter, the same madman who had killed his wife because he was done practicing with her and wanted to move on to me. I should be thinking about the fact that Scrog liked to look people in the eye as he shot them.

But God help me, I couldn't think about anything except the man in front of me. All I really wanted was to finish what Ranger and I had started this morning in my bed. What was with me? Why couldn't I keep my priorities straight? Damn hormones.

I took a deep breath to tell Ranger we should stop, but that slight movement brought our bodies together and the only sound I could make was a low moan. Apparently, that was all the answer that Ranger had been waiting for, because before I could take another breath, he leaned down and captured my mouth with his own.

My mouth opened to him and our tongues met in an intricate dance for control. Ranger's hips pressed against mine, pinning me against the counter as one hand came up to cup my breast and the other tangled into my hair, controlling my head and deepening our kiss. I could feel his hard length straining against the denim of his jeans and pressing against my stomach. I chafed against my pajamas, the thin cotton material of my boxers suddenly unbearable as I ached to feel Ranger's body against my bare skin.

If I had it my way, I would have taken him standing up, right there in the kitchen, but Ranger clearly had a different idea. He actually growled at me as I began to yank at his belt while grinding my pelvis against him. Before I knew what was happening, he had scooped me up into his arms without ever breaking our kiss.

When we got to my bedroom door, he didn't bother shifting me in his arms to turn the knob. Instead, he kicked the door open with such force that the knob imbedded itself into the drywall. The next thing I knew, I was airborne, landing with a thump in the middle of the bed where he had thrown me. I looked over to see him stripping off his jeans before quickly climbing on top of me. A nervous giggle escaped my lips, and I couldn't stop myself from baiting him just a bit.

"Someone might think you're in a rush," I said breathlessly, trying to slide my pajamas out of the way so that he had better access. But before I had a chance to finish, Ranger caught my wrists, restraining my movements as he looked down on me with a predatory grin.

"No, no, Babe. This is something I would never rush." His eyes dilated to black with desire as he began to punctuate his words with kisses, starting at my jaw and moving down my neck. "Never doubt that."

His mouth moved its way to my collarbone, his tongue lazily licking the hollow of my throat as if he had all the time in the world. He held both of my wrists in one hand, pinned above my head. Then suddenly his other hand came down and ripped my tank top straight down my chest. He ignored my gasp of surprise and began to kiss his way down my chest, suckling my breasts and dragging my nipples between his teeth.

After several more minutes spent worshiping my breasts, he once again began to work his way down my body. He held me immobile as I began to writhe from the glorious torture of his hand and mouth. I was desperately begging for release by the time he finally reached my slick, sensitive folds. Then suddenly he stopped. I wanted to cry, but the look in his heavily lidded eyes cut off all off all protests before they could leave my mouth.

"Babe, there is one thing about me that you need to learn," Ranger's deep voice vibrated against my skin. "Even when I'm starving, I don't rush through a meal." His tongue resumed its path down my body, and his words come slowly, breathed against my most tender flesh. "I always savor every… single… bite."

Oh, boy.

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An eternity later, Ranger and I lay sprawled across my bed, waiting for my breathing to return to normal. Ranger absently curled a lock of my hair around his finger and the merest hint of a smile pulled at the corner of his mouth. He pulled me close to him and kissed the top of my head.

"I'd like nothing more than to stay in bed with you, Babe, but I need to check in with Tank and see if there's anything new on Scrog."

He pulled away from me after one more kiss above my ear. He was on his way out of the room when noticed that the bedroom doorknob was still imbedded in the wall.

"If Morelli was serious about moving in tonight, you'd better decide what you're going to tell him about what happened to your wall. He may not take it well if he finds out how we broke it."

So much for afterglow, I had forgotten all about Joe. I pulled a pillow over my head with a groan, as I waited for the inevitable guilt to come. But a moment later, I still could make myself regret anything that had just happened. I was an awful person. I wondered what Ranger thought of me.

I pulled the pillow back off and looked over to see him still standing in my doorway, staring at me with the shadow of a smile on his face. He shook his head slightly and went to leave, but before he walked through the door, he answered my silent question and told me in a single word everything I wanted to know about what he was feeling.

"Babe."

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_Author's note: Twelve Sharp continues with Stephanie going to the Bonds office and eventually escaping to Point Pleasant with Lula. _

_Author's plea: Please review, I haven't written anything in well over a year and I need a bit of feedback to get my going in the right direction again!_


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